The present invention relates to the field of purchase authorization and, more particularly, to systems and methods for authorizing purchases associated with a vehicle as well as for methods relating to operating a fuel-dispensing service station.
In the past a gas station was primarily a location to purchase fuel for a vehicle and occasionally to purchase comestibles and products associated with vehicular operation. Increasingly, gas stations are transforming into service stations, becoming one of the most important retail venues in industrialized society. The reasons for the increasing importance of service stations as retail venues, as well as the nature of the purchases, result from the relative advantages of service stations which are dictated by the primary purpose of service stations: efficiently providing fuel to vehicles.
To be successful as a gas station, a service station must generally be located on a heavily traveled road with large area available for both high speed entrance and egress, many fuel-dispensing locations, arranged for high-throughput refueling of many continuously arriving vehicles and having an efficient method for paying for the fuel. Increasingly, people are found traveling on the road for extended periods of time. On the one hand, this means that people have less time to purchase items at local stores and even to make a special trip for the purpose of shopping, especially as shopping trips often include time wasted in search of parking and walking to and from the vehicle. People have less opportunity to become acquainted with local stores so little loyalty develops to a local store and may not even know where such a store is located. The actual refueling process requires a relatively long time, time which must be used.
As a result of the above factors, persons refueling at a service station find themselves with a car safely parked at a fuel-dispensing location waiting for the fuel to be dispensed, during which purchases of various and sundry goods may be performed. Given the above situation, a service station operator finds it desirable to increase the attractiveness of an own service station relative to other service stations, to increase the revenues from non-fuel purchases performed at the service station and to engender customer loyalty.
Due to the development of sophisticated control electronics and vehicle identification devices, gasoline service stations have evolved into complex electronic systems having point-of-sale (POS) devices able to accommodate various types of payment means, such as, for example, credit cards. Additionally, not only fuel is available for purchase but also other goods and services such as convenience store products.
One preferred method for increasing the attractiveness of a service station is through the use of automated payment for fuel. A vehicle is equipped with an identification tag storing data relating to the vehicle identity and a payment method that is readable by a tag-reader associated with an individual fuel-dispensing location, for example with the fuel-dispensing nozzle. When the fuel-dispensing nozzle is placed inside the refueling port of the vehicle, a tag-reader reads data from the identification tag and transmits the data to a centralized location that issues an authorization signal to dispense fuel if the payment method is valid. Not only are such methods efficient, allowing fuel-dispensing and payment to occur virtually automatically, but such methods reduce the chance of fuel-theft and gas-station robbery.
The advent of advanced service station systems has produced a need for increased transaction efficiency by both customers and goods or services suppliers met, for example, by the development of fully automated authorization and purchasing systems. In fully automated authorization and purchasing systems, the purchase of goods or services at service stations does not require the use of a credit card, debit card, or smart card. Rather, a customer or vehicle is provided with a communications device such as, for example, identification tag, which stores data associated with the customer or vehicle such as, for example, credit account details. The communications device is configured to communicate with other components of the service station systems such as, for example, fuel dispensers and cash registers. In this manner, the identification device automatically transmits data associated with the customer or vehicle and the system automatically carries out the financial aspects of the transaction such as payment for the purchase of goods or services, without requiring any special action by the customer or by the service station employee.
In the art, various methods, systems, and devices for automatic refueling of vehicles are known. These include wireless RF servers which communicate with devices located within fuel dispensers and with identification devices mounted on vehicles, such as disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/911,570 published as US 2003/0025600 A1, and systems for the management of fueling transactions, such as that of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/425,073 published as US 2004/0215575 A1. There are also known systems for ensuring the positioning of a vehicle relative to a fixed automatic fueling service terminal, such as that disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/298,160 published as US 2004/0095230 A1.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/042,196 published as US 2005/0184155 A1 relates to a vehicle fueling system wherein the vehicle is provided with an RF identification tag mounted on the vehicle windshield and wherein the fueling station includes sensors for detecting the presence of the vehicle and reporting to a controller subsystem. The controller subsystem communicates with a point of sale system for processing a fueling transaction and activation of a fuel dispenser. It should be noted that this system does not include any physical interface to the fuel dispenser.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,857,501 discloses a system for fueling a vehicle which includes an identification unit having a communication loop and circuitry for transmitting information associated with the vehicle, such as identification number, credit account information, and fuel requirements. The unit is mounted on the fuel intake pipe of the vehicle and communicates with a data receiver located proximal to the fuel dispensing station. In order to secure the unit to the fuel intake pipe of the vehicle, the device requires a housing assembly having a series of tabs and a ratchet type assembly, and a tool is used to advance the ratchet assembly such that the housing assembly is tightened against the interior of the fuel intake pipe. An alternative embodiment of the invention requires a housing assembly having a series of compression activated expansion joints which are expanded by the tightening of screws such that the housing assembly is tightened against the interior of the fuel intake pipe.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,032 relates to a fuel distribution system wherein there is provided a nozzle-mounted device which receives information, such as vehicle identification and fueling data, from a vehicle-mounted transceiver prior to discharge of fuel into the vehicle. The device communicates with an authorization subsystem located at the fuel filling facility. The vehicle-mounted transceiver is located on an inner surface of the vehicle chassis and includes an antenna for transmitting information to the nozzle-mounted device. The device also includes a fuel flow driven transceiver power generator operated by fuel pumped by the fuel pump that passes through the fuel nozzle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,900,719 B2 discloses an anti-theft device that provides protection for an identification device utilized in a vehicle refueling system. The anti-theft device comprises a plug that retains an electrical chip having a unique identification number for the vehicle, the plug being inserted into a bore in the body of the vehicle. The chip must be programmed and the plug must be installed on the vehicle body by the vehicle manufacturer. The chip is electrically connected to a controller portion of the system by an electrical connection installed at the fuel inlet of the vehicle. Removal of the identification device from the body of the vehicle will disable the controller portion of the system, such that the device provides anti-theft protection for the vehicle identification chip.
While known systems for automatic refueling of vehicles enable the identification of authorized vehicles and their subsequent refueling, prior art systems require professional installation due to the fact that they contain complicated means for mounting the identification devices on the vehicle.
It would be highly advantageous to have a system for refueling an authorized vehicle that would overcome at least some of the disadvantages of the prior art. Preferably, such a system would include a vehicle identification device that is inexpensive to produce and is simple to install on the vehicle. Such a system would also preferably include an interface with the vehicle odometer, such that various data relating to operation of the vehicle and vehicle fuel consumption may be determined and communicated.